Video Game Tycoon in Tokyo-Chapter 753: How About Another Playthrough?

In NieR: Automata, the first and second playthroughs are essentially just the beginning—or rather, an extended prologue.

Through that prologue, you get a general understanding of the game's world: Earth, once the home of humanity, was invaded by aliens. In an effort to reclaim their planet, humans created androids and AI-based machines to fight on their behalf.

However, in both the first and second playthroughs, the male protagonist 9S stumbles upon the shocking truth: humanity had actually gone extinct long ago.

Everything they were doing now... was nothing more than a simulation of their mission.

9S falls into a state of confusion upon learning the truth, but his deep feelings for 2B anchor him emotionally. After experiencing both of their stories from two perspectives, players also become attached to them as a pair.

Both endings of the first and second playthroughs are fairly satisfying—there's a bit of regret, but still some hope.

But this was only the prologue.

The game's true narrative is hidden beneath the surface, and everything begins to unravel in the third playthrough—which also ends in tragedy.

After completing the first and second routes, the girl streamer let out a sigh of relief, thinking she'd more or less finished the game.

Normally, two playthroughs would be the end of a game.

Her main goal wasn't to explore all the routes, but rather to provide a story-viewing experience for her audience.

"Wow, that was a great game. I kinda want to buy it myself."

"As expected from Gamestar Electronic Entertainment—consistently top-notch."

"Honestly, I feel like something's missing. The story didn't feel completely wrapped up. Like, how exactly did humanity go extinct? It wasn't explained in detail. And after defeating Adam and Eve, does that mean the androids can finally reclaim Earth? None of that was clarified."

"Feels like there's going to be a sequel. I'll definitely buy it if they release one, hopefully they don't take too long."

Everyone watching the stream was satisfied, and so was the girl.

After three to four days, she had completed the two playthroughs. It was an enjoyable journey.

Stretching, she turned to the camera and said:

"Alright, everyone, I think today's stream is about to wrap up. I'll rest for now and maybe stream something else tomorrow. Any recommendations?"

"Bayonetta!"

"Monster Hunter!"

"The Witch's House!"

"Dead Cells!"

Games filled the chat like people calling out items from a menu.

Of course, the final choice was still hers.

"Hmm, I think I'll play Titanfall's online mode tomorrow. I've been playing Gamestar games nonstop lately, and I haven't touched my Titanfall rank in ages. If I don't play soon, I'll drop out of my Platinum Pilot rank!"

The chat responded cheerfully:

"We'll watch whatever you play, streamer! See you tomorrow!"

"Yes yes, have a good rest! See you tomorrow!"

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"Goodbye~"

She smiled sweetly. She really loved this streaming life. It's why she had quit her job to go full-time.

Doing something she loved, while making good money—it was the dream.

Click.

She ended the stream, got up from her seat, stretched a bit, and prepared to go out for a walk.

Too much gaming wasn't good for her—some fresh air would help.

But just as she was about to leave, her phone rang.

Since becoming a streamer, she rarely received calls, especially not right after finishing a stream.

Curious, she picked it up. It was from an unknown number.

"Hello?"

"Hi there. I'm from the Facebook Live team—we used to be coworkers, remember?"

"Oh, hi! What's up?"

"We just received a request from Gamestar Electronic Entertainment. They want to promote NieR: Automata through our platform and specifically asked if you'd be willing to continue streaming the game. There's a bonus payout for this as well—from both us and Gamestar."

"Huh?"

A sponsored stream?

This was the first time something like this had happened.

Until now, most streamers played games purely for popularity. Few realized the power of influencers yet. Her income mainly came from Facebook's streaming department—roughly double what she made in her previous job, though that was because she was already a top-tier streamer.

The live-streaming industry hadn't really exploded yet, and most people hadn't seen the full value of streamers.

And now someone actually wanted to hire her to promote a game?

She paused her steps and asked:

"You just want me to keep streaming NieR: Automata?"

"Yes, just continue with it."

"But I just finished the game on stream. There's no online mode either... Are you saying I should start over from the beginning?"

"Not at all. According to Gamestar, most players still haven't completed the game. And from what I saw in your stream, you just finished the second playthrough, right?"

"Right."

"Then please continue. There's still a third route—and it's the core of the game. Everything you've played so far was just setup. If you stop now, you'd actually be missing out."

She was surprised.

A third route with different content? Another ending?

She had assumed it would just repeat the story again, maybe with a different ending. She wasn't too excited to do that.

"Trust me. Or rather—trust Gamestar. They said all I had to say was: Just trust Gamestar, and you'll want to play the third route."

"...Alright. I'll give it a shot."

She thought about the bonus reward.

Even if it turned out to be repetitive, it was still easy money. And with that, she had no reason to refuse.